3 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Stretch Before Your Workouts

#1: Studies show that static stretching has been shown to make some athletes weaker and slower. Yikes! Read on...

I always do a dynamic warm up before I workout. It's fun, warms up my core and gets my body and mind focused on training. Plus, a solid dynamic warm up preps my body by loosening my muscles and tendons and increasing blood flow.

Stretching? I stretch at the end of my routine. Here's why:

Here are 3 reasons to stretch after your workouts:

1. On Kiana's Flex Appeal, you've often heard me say, "you wouldn't take a rubber band out of the freezer and try to stretch it, would you?" You've got to warm up. Plus, if you repeatedly stretch a rubber band, it gets weaker and limp. This is obviously counter productive to your workout and makes you feel more wobbly and weaker. Instead, dynamic warm ups are better.

2. Perform recovery stretching after your workout, when your muscles are warm and pliable. Plus, it's a relaxing finish to a tough workout.

3. Pre workout, static stretching has been shown to make some athletes weaker and slower. Who wants that at any fitness level? Instead, do dynamic warm ups that mimic the movements (or similar movements) you will be doing in your actual workout such as: jumping jacks, squats, squat jumps, plank rotations. These help warm up your body, enhance stability, increase blood flow and loosen muscles and tendons. I always feel warmed to the core and ready for action after a dynamic warm up. Dynamic warm ups can be done without gear or using a resistance band, such as the Super Band, they are terrific for tossing in your suitcase to workout on the go and every home gym should have one. Performing a dynamic warm up using a lighter resistance band enables you to engage your core and fire up your key stabilization muscles.

Great for a Total Body Beginner Workout too!

In addition to Super Bands being a great, cost effective piece of gear for a warm up, it also makes for a wonderful Beginner Total Body Workout to ease into strength moves and master proper form by strengthening the all important core muscles before you move on to weights. Because your core muscles and key stabilization muscles are engages to keep your body centered, you learn how to "feel your muscles" and "train your body to remain in proper alignment" before you grab heavier weights.

Advanced? Try this:

I will do 100's. Pick an exercise such as squats (below) and do 100 reps with the Super Band. Super hard.

Squats are a good dynamic warm up, the Super Band adds just enough resistance to activate your core, glutes and legs.

You can do dozens of exercises with them and they are light and portable to toss in your gym bag or suitcase.

Interesting: One, a study being published this month in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, concluded that if you stretch before you lift weights, you may find yourself feeling weaker and wobblier than you expect during your workout. Those findings join those of another new study from Croatia, a bogglingly comprehensive reanalysis of data from earlier experiments that was published in The Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports. Together, the studies augment a growing scientific consensus that pre-exercise stretching is generally unnecessary and likely counterproductive.

Oh Kicks

Lunges are a good dynamic warm up with or without my Super Band.

Dynamic warm ups can be done without gear or using a resistance band, such as the Super Band.